Water in My Soul

I was born and raised in the city of Chicago. I grew up a city kid with privileges - my parents owned a summer home in Lake Geneva. My grandpa was the carpenter who built our Lake Geneva house. It was knotty pine inside with wood floors throughout. I spent every summer of my life, till age 15, in Lake Geneva. On the last day of each school year we packed up our car and drove up to Wisconsin. I returned to Chicago on the day before school resumed. During those carefree days of summer I swam, skied, sailed, and went boating. I think I had permanent prune skin from all the time I spent in Lake Geneva. I swam, dove, played in water literally all day long...until I got to be too cool and worried more about my hair than having fun. A charmed life for sure...but like most dopey teens I didn't realize what a good thing I had, complaining that I was bored - bored with a charmed life? I remain ashamed to this day. My parents sold the house several years ago when none of us kids (and our kids) went up there. We were all too busy with our sports and then our kids' sports. Sad.

I was born under a Water sign. I have been a "water baby" since I could walk. In fact I actually DID walk off the pier into the water when I was not yet two years old! And oh, my friends chide me for this fact, but I was a synchronized swimmer in high school. No stupid faces and nose clips back then. No excessive makeup and lipstick either. In fact, our teacher sponsor made us re-do our routines if we spit out any water when we came up from underwater. She would screech at the top of her lungs and embarrass us to death. My love of water left me smelling like chlorine most days in my senior year of high school. My eyes were permanently reddened from the chemicals and my hair never looked too great, as I remember it. This was before blow dryers, and I have the world's thickest hair that never dried! Artie didn't seem to mind...

Last week I had the pleasure of visiting with a dear friend in Hayward, WI. Her and her husband's beautiful home is on Callahan Lake and the views are spectacular! Deer in the feeder, finches and woodpeckers in the bird feeders. My camera was so busy! I felt so at home and at peace with the world. I realized right then and there that I was meant to be near water. I have been thinking of nothing else since my visit. Water, trees, and wildlife is what brings me the most peace. Getting to photograph all of these things fed my passions. I have even been online looking for potential property. Yeah, right. This is just not gonna happen any time soon. I'll be OK. Our swim spa is ready for use now and our pine trees look great. It isn't lake property, but it will have to do. The robins. doves, and sparrows will have to satisfy my nature fix for now.